Fictional Teachers We Had

Good morning, class. Today we are going to discuss teachers who shaped who we are. Those educators who taught us important life lessons, and used the classroom to make us the people we are today. Of course, we all have real teachers who have done this in our lives. I remember two English teachers, Mr. Sealand, who inspired me to read, and Miss Governale, who inspired me to write, and an art teacher, Mr. Marvell, who inspired me to think deeply. These were all great teachers, and I feel l need to pay my due respects to them, however this article is about the teachers we all had. I’m talking about fictional teachers. So, here’s the list of the most respected fictional teachers from movies, books and television.

10. John Keating (Dead Poets Society)

Stand on your desks, everyone, and rip out a page of your textbooks. Well, okay, that’s exactly what annoyed Roger Ebert, in his review of “Dead Poets Society” as he described Mr. Keating as a “delicate balancing act between restraint and shtick.” However annoying Robin William’s portrayal of a teacher is to the modern viewer, we would all lie if we said we didn’t want him as a teacher. He’s been both spoofed and celebrated, but Mr. Keating did think outside the box and inspire his students. Humor is often a good quality found in real memorable teachers, too.

9. Miss Honey (Matilda)

Give this women teacher of the year. From the Roald Dahl novel, and the movie by Danny DeVilo, Miss Honey doesn’t only share Matilda’s love of reading, she also ends up adopting Matilda, from her nasty brutish family. Together, they make a very smart team. Not only does Matilda have a better life with Miss. Honey, but she gets those darn powers of hers under control. Bravo.

8. Mr. Balding (Saved By The Bell)
Yes, he’s the principal who hung out a bit too much with the kids (and in real life, that would be kind of creepy, but this is a TV show, so let’s give it a pass.)  However, you can’t deny that Mr. Balding cares about his school and his students a lot too. He seems to always be there for Zack and the gang when they needed an adult to talk to. Even when he’s a total goof ball, he’s also a caring adult.

7. Mr. Miyagi (The Karate Kid)
Mr. Miyagi is a great teacher. The only character to appear in the entire series (not counting the remake); Mr. Miyagi is also there to teach kids discipline and fighting. He is a good listener, teacher and a caring older man. Ok, so the plots to “The Karate Kid” movies didn’t always make total sense but Mr. Miyagi always taught kids to both understand and kick butt at the same time.

6. Yoda (Star Wars)
Yoda isn’t human, but he’s caring, wise and taught generations of Jedi’s how to do it. He is there for a young Luke Skywalker, and cared enough to take on the role as mentor. He’s a great whatever he is, and you can’t get that experience from just any teacher. Yoda is always there to teach you how to have a firm grasp on the light saver.

5. Professor Leonard Haffsteader (Big Bang Theory)

Okay, so he spends more time lusting over Penny than teaching a university class but we did see him teach a class a couple times in the series. However, I do think he make a very good teacher to have, because if he has proven anything, Leonard is an understanding and patient guy. You try having Sheldon as a roommate. Not only does he have him as a roommate, but he voluntarily considers him his best friend.

4. Professor Robert Langdon (The Di Vinci Code)

Okay, this book isn’t a masterpiece of literature, but still, Langdon would be a pretty cool professor to have. Not only is he full of conspiracy theories, but he went on great adventures to prove them. Think of the cool stories he can tell in class (fact checkers need not apply. Chances are, you can get an “A” on your paper doing as much fact checking as author Dan Brown did.)

3. Professor Snape (Harry Potter)

You know, he’s a grouch. He’s also rude and not an easy “A”. Not the nicest guy in the world but there he is something good underneath that all. He is actually on your side, and does a lot you don’t know about to keep you alive. I’m not going to give away details, but let’s just say, Harry Potter named one of his kids Snape for a reason.

2. Dumbledore (Harry Potter)

He is the father figure to Harry Potter, keeper of the secrets and the leader of Hogwarts. He is someone who cares deeply for his students and believes very much in them. He is an old wizard, and has had a lot of life experiences, and he is always there to give a speech, explaining not only to Harry Potter and friends the lesson of this installment, but also to the reader, as well.

1. Mr. Feeny (Boy Meets World)

Make the Feeny call! Yes, “Boy Meets World” isn’t exactly one of the greatest sitcoms ever made, but Mr. Feeny is one of the best fictional teachers to ever grace the television screen. I mean, he cares so deeply about his students, he teaches them from elementary to college. He always has the speech at the end to explain the lesson of the show, and has the last line of the series, “I love you all. Class dismissed”. Sounds like a certain other teacher (J.K. Rowling ever watch Boy Meets World?) Mr. Feeny is played wonderfully by veteran actor William Daniels. Yes, this show got crazy towards the end, and even started to acknowledge it openly with a ton of meta jokes. However, Mr. Feeny is always there in syndication to explain to us life’s journey because Mr. Matthews needs to be guided, and Mr. Feeny guided us all.